This Is Why Pacific Islanders Are The Fattest People In The World

In 2007, the tiny island
country of Nauru in the South Pacific topped Forbes' list of the
world's fattest counties, with 94.5% of the population classified
as overweight.experienceoftravelling.com

A
new report by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) points to
globalization and an increased dependence on imported foods for
the deteriorating health of Pacific Islanders, who rank among the
world's fattest people based on a list compiled by
Forbes in 2007.

The lengthy report lists rapid urbanization, where populations
are migrating out of rural agricultural communities into dense
cities, as one reason for the change in traditional food
production and consumption.

Residents of Pacific nations have largely replaced
locally-produced island foods, such as fresh fish, meat, fruits,
and vegetables with imported foods of poor nutritional quality
such as rice, flour, sugar, and canned meats.

According to the ADB:

The World Health Organization recently reported that the
Pacific population’s calorie consumption has been
increasing, yet nutritional status has decreased,
reflecting the change in diets from traditional fare to mainly
imported, low-quality foods. This has unequivocally led
to the deteriorating health status of Pacific islanders, whose
rates of obesity, diabetes, and micronutrient deficiencies are
among the highest in the world [emphasis
added].

The 14 Pacific developing member countries of the ADB, which
comprise over 7,500 islands scattered across 30 million square
kilometers of the tropical Pacific Ocean, have a combined
population of 10.1 million people. While the majority of Pacific
islanders remain in rural areas, the urban population is expected
to grow from roughly 2.5 million to 5 million by 2035, according
to the report.

Compounding dangers to human health posed by population growth is
the overarching threat of climate change-induced weather events
and environmental hazards. These include more intense storms,
sea-level rise, warmer air and water temperatures, and ocean
acidification — all of which will have negative impacts on the
health and productivity of regional crops, livestock, fisheries,
and water resources, in turn, bolstering the Pacific's reliance
on commercial markets for food supply.